Falconeye Game Review 9: Epic Mickey
Nope. Not Metroid Prime. Epic Mickey. But I promise that the next one I do will be Metroid Prime. But, anyway, I figure since "Epic Mickey: The Power of Two" is coming out soon, now's the time to do the one that started it all. Plot 70 years ago, Mickey Mouse snuck into the sorceror Yen Sid's workshop. There, he accidently creates a monster out of ink, and spills paint thinner all over Sid's latest creation, a world for things that had been forgotten. The ink monster (known as the Blot) enters the world and the thinner almost destroys the world Sid created. It didn't, but it rendered the whole world a waste land. Unable to do anything about it, Sid puts his creation aside... ...Several years later, the Shadow Blot comes and attacks mickey, dragging him and a magic brush into the Wasteland. When Midkey awakes, he is strapped to a table with an old enemy, the Mad Doctor, looming over him. He is rescued by a gremlin named Gus, who tells Mickey how to use his magic brush. Gus and Mickey then travel across the Wasteland, and they eventually meet up with Mickey's half-brother, Ozwald the Lucky Rabbit, who is jealous of Mickey's fame. The three decide to try to defeat the blot, repair the thinner disaster, and get Mickey home. Alond the way, they meet up with several other forgotten characters, such as Horace Horsecollar, Clarrabelle Cow, Petetronic, and even a robotic version of Captain Hook. I won't spoil the ending (yet), but it's a very interesting story and it will be different every time you play (I'll explain that in a second). Gameplay You play as Mickey through the entire game. Mickey wields a magic brush that he can use to spray paint or thinner on the blotlings, the main enemies of the game. Paint will make them your friends and then they will "help" you fight the other blotlings. Thinner will melt them. You also have a spin attack, but it's next to useless in a battle (unless there's a pool of thinner nearby that you can knock them into), and it's mainly used to break machinery and operate gears. Depending on how much of which liquid you use, you recieve guardians. These guys will almost automatically befriend or kill certain enemies. As you go through the game, you'll explore seven areas. Dark Beauty Castle: Basically Ozwald's ripoff of Cinderella Castle. It's very crooked, and, well, darker. Not really much else to say. Gremlin World: This is where all of Gus' friends live. You're only going to be here for a small portion of the game, so don't get too comfortable. Mean Street: This is basically the center of the wasteland. Here, you'll find Horace Horsecollar's Detective Agency, the Penny Arcade, and City Hall, where the mayor, Big Bad Pete resides (who is just as annoying as he was in the classic shows). OsTown: Is it OzTown or OsTown? Anyway, this is Ozwald's version of Mickey's Toontown Fair. Here, you'll find Mickey's house, and Clarabelle's garden. Tommorrow City: Ozwald's version of Tommorowland. Ventureland: This is the homeland of Captain James Hook's crew. There's lush jungles, an ocean of thinner, and robotic pirates that you need to avoid because Paint has no affect on them. Bog Easy: I'm not exactly sure what this place is supposed to represent, the closest thing I can come up with is the Haunted Mansion ride. This is probably my favorite area because of the ghosts, possesed bookshelves, and... Madame Leona? She's not a forgotten character? And neither is Captain Hook, what's going on here? Okay, this game revolves a lot around karma. The whole time I played it, I couldn't help but think of Shadow the Hedgehog (only, a lot more fun). What decisions you make will affect how the people of the Wasteland reacte to you, how the story moves along, and the ending. For example, before you go to Ventureland, Pete may ask you to do a certain thing for him while you there. You can either choose to not do it (which is usually the harder/more time consuming option) ir doing it, which will result in him liking you more and possibly helping you in the future. Good Aspects The graphics in this game are absolutely amazing. Disney manages to take the classic look, put some gothic elements into it, and create a whole new world. If the jungles of Ventureland won't win you over, than Dark Beauty Castle definently will. The controls are very flexible, they're not the best, but they're pretty good. Bad Aspects Most of the negatives I have about this game are mostly just nit-picks. But one thing I can't get over is the fact that during cutscenes, the dialouge ispresented in writing that you need to read. I mean, they seriously couldn't have hired voice actors. I'm pretty sure they fixed this problem in the sequel, but seriously... There's also no multiplayer mode, which surprised me, another issue they're fixing in the sequel. Conclusion Epic Mickey is an awesome game. With good graphics, fun gameplay, and aspects that might even test how good a person you are, I'll give it an 8/10 with the title of... well... EPIC! What's Next? Metroid Prime WILL be my next review. Period.